Choosing the correct Colorado garnishment form is critical when a response deadline is running. The legal team at Wagner Law Office, P.C. knows Form 30 addresses exempt property or funds, while a dispute over continuing wage withholding usually requires Form 28.
Before deciding how to respond, identify what was taken or withheld, read every form served with the writ, and preserve the date you received the paperwork. The broader circumstances may also affect whether bankruptcy is an option.
Facing wage garnishment is incredibly stressful, especially when your hard-earned paycheck is on the line. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.
Choose Form 30 or Form 28
Colorado Form 30 isn’t the standard form for disputing an ongoing wage-withholding calculation. It is the Claim of Exemption to Writ of Garnishment With Notice, used to assert that money or property apart from continuing earnings is protected from collection.
A Writ of Continuing Garnishment directs an employer to withhold part of an employee’s earnings for a judgment creditor, the person or company collecting a judgment. The employer is the garnishee, meaning the third party required to hold or pay funds under the writ.
When a creditor begins a continuing wage garnishment, the employer receives Form 26, two copies of Form 27, and a blank Form 28. Form 27 shows the protected amount. If that calculation is wrong, the appropriate response is Colorado Form 28, Objection to Calculation of the Amount of Exempt Earnings.
- Use Form 30 when a creditor seeks money or property that isn’t part of ongoing earnings and you believe it is exempt.
- Use Form 28 when you dispute the protected-earnings calculation in a continuing wage garnishment.
- Read every attached form before responding because the type of writ determines the response path.
Determine Whether the Property or Funds Are Exempt
A Form 30 exemption claim must identify the specific money or property at issue and state the legal reason it should be protected. A general statement that you need the money isn’t enough. The source of the funds and the type of property matter.
Colorado’s exemption laws, under Section 13-54-102, Colorado Revised Statutes, protect categories that include clothing, household goods, tools of trade, certain motor vehicles, life insurance, and certain earned-income or child-tax-credit refunds. The available protection can also depend on the judgment. For some judgments, such as certain support orders, bankruptcy proceedings, and tax debts, different garnishment limits apply under Section 13-54-104(3), Colorado Revised Statutes, while the underlying property exemptions themselves come from Section 13-54-102.
Gather records before completing the form. Bank statements, benefit letters, pay records, account histories, and documents showing the source of funds can connect the property to the exemption asserted. These records are especially important when one account contains mixed deposits, such as wages alongside Social Security, disability benefits, or tax refunds.
Describe the account, funds, or personal property clearly enough to identify it, then state the exemption basis that applies.
File Form 30 & Deliver Copies Promptly
For property other than earnings, file the written Form 30 with the Clerk of the Court within 14 days after receiving the notice. Use the approved form attached to the writ instead of creating your own version.
Filing with the clerk isn’t the only required step. When you file, immediately send a copy by certified mail with return receipt requested to the garnishee and the judgment creditor’s attorney. If the creditor doesn’t have an attorney, send the copy directly to the creditor.
Keep a complete set of records in one place:
- A copy of the completed Form 30 and every document you filed.
- The court filing receipt or other proof that the clerk received the form.
- Certified-mail receipts and return receipts for the garnishee and the creditor or creditor’s attorney.
- Bank records, benefit notices, or other documents supporting the asserted exemption.
What happens next depends on the writ, the property involved, and whether the creditor contests the filing. Don’t assume that filing alone releases funds or ends collection activity. Watch for court notices and comply with every hearing date or document request.
Handle Wage Calculations & Hardship Issues Separately
Use Form 28, not Form 30, when the dispute concerns the calculation of protected earnings from an ongoing paycheck. Form 28, Objection to Calculation of the Amount of Exempt Earnings, allows the court to review whether the withholding amount was calculated correctly.
A hardship objection raises a separate issue in a wage-garnishment dispute. Colorado rules allow a written objection that states the grounds for the requested protection. At a hearing involving disposable earnings, the court considers living expenses from the 60 days before the hearing, including housing, utilities, food, medical and dental care, child care, clothing, education, and transportation.
Organize current records instead of relying on estimates. Lease or mortgage statements, utility bills, child-care invoices, medical bills, transportation costs, and recent pay information can document the expenses affecting your household budget.
Keep the remedies separate. Form 30 and Form 28 address different problems, and using the correct form creates a clearer record of what you’re asking the court to review.
Consider the Broader Debt Situation
An exemption request may be important, but it doesn’t necessarily resolve the financial pressure behind the garnishment. The appropriate response depends on the income or property involved, the underlying judgment, other debts, and whether collection efforts are likely to continue.
Possible responses include challenging an improperly issued garnishment, asserting available exemptions, negotiating with creditors, and addressing protections for income such as Social Security and disability benefits. When the debt extends beyond one garnishment, Chapter 7 bankruptcy or Chapter 13 bankruptcy may warrant consideration. Filing either chapter triggers the automatic stay, a legal protection that generally pauses wage garnishments and most other collection activity while the bankruptcy case proceeds.
The notice, the property at issue, and the date you received the paperwork determine which response fits. Acting promptly preserves more options, whether the next step involves Form 30, a wage-calculation objection, or a broader debt-relief plan.
We provide Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy guidance, free initial consultations, and payment plans for people facing debt pressure in Denver, Colorado Springs, and surrounding areas.
To discuss a garnishment or bankruptcy options, contact Wagner Law Office, P.C. at (303) 536-5124.